VRPen2

Sample

Link to a simple collaborative WebGL sample: https://ajtuttle.github.io/VRPen2-WebGL-Sample/

Troubleshooting: https://github.com/AJTuttle/VRPen2-WebGL-Sample

Introduction

VRPen is an internet-networked light-weight Unity package for collaborative drawing. While initially made as a drawing solution for VR software, it has evolved into a generic drawing package for Unity.

VRPen has many drawing functions

VRPen has a variety of functions and features, including...

Adding stamps (images)
Adding text
Backgrounds
Undo
Clear
Image Exporting
Color changing
Line thickness changing

VRPen takes advantage of both bitmap and vector drawing benefits

VRPen draws by creating custom geometry which then gets captured and rendered down onto a texture. This means that we get benefits of having individual line objects, and also benefits from the output being a simple texture. Some advantages include...

The ability to have functions like 'undo'
The ability to have no-latency smoothing on line input
The ability to output one drawing canvas onto n displays
The ability to display drawing canvases on non-flat display (3d objects)
High performance even with drawings that contain many lines and other graphics.

VRPen is light-weight

VRPen only renders new lines and graphics when it needs to. By not clearing previous drawing data from the render texture, VRPen is able to avoid rendering the entire canvas every frame.

VRPen is easily networked

VRPen is not separately networked but is simple to integrate with any pre-existing networking solution. VRPen also has an integrated light-weight caching system for users that join late.

VRpen has generic output

VRPen has both canvases, and displays. Simply put, canvases are the actually drawings, while displays are where the canvases are displayed. VRPen can simply have one canvas for each display, but it can also be setup to have displays that contain more than one canvas, multiple displays that contain the same canvases, or any combination.

VRPen has generic input

VRpen comes with the following input devices and is built in such a way that it is easy to add new custom input devices.

VR Markers
Mouse
Touch screen
Graphics tablets

Import the package

- Note: This package is in development and will undergo changes.

To import this packet, add the git link to the Unity package manager. Please note that this package depends on TextMeshPro.

Once imported, a sample scene can also be loaded via the package manager.